Wednesday, March 02, 2011

"The Family" - and a toe-rag

The 'Levyi Bereg' website frequently posts reviews of articles from the Ukrainian media. In its latest posting it quotes portions of an article from "Kommentarii" entitled: "The Family has finally secured the Tax Administration for itself"

L.B. says: The term "Family", in relation to top administrators appointed by, and close to the family of President Viktor Yanukovych, is now firmly entrenched in the mass media, even in newspapers.

"The Family" now has loyalists in the Prosecutor-General's office, at the highest levels of the judiciary, in the ministry of internal affairs, [see previous blogs on reasons for not believing the current authorities] and now, it seems, in the Tax Administration.

Below are some portions from 'Kommentarii":

"After the appointment just before the New Year, of Vitaly Zakharchenko as chairman of the State Tax Administration of Ukraine and Andriy Holovach, as his first deputy, [both of whom are linked to Alexander Yanukovych, eldest son of the President] Head of S.T.A.U. in Donetsk region, Olexander Klimenko was also promoted. The new deputy head of the Tax Administration is also considered to be a nominee of the presidential family. Together with Holovach, Klimenko will control V.A.T. refunds and the extraction of taxes from oligarchs at the national level. "

The 'Kommentarii' article includes a note surprisingly linking the appointments of Klimenko and the current head of the National Bank of Ukraine Serhiy Arbuzov, to former president Viktor Yushchenko, all in the context of the "Family".

"30-year-old Olexander Klimenko owes his swift career rise in the S.T.A.U. to his older brother Anton Klimenko, who is still head of the Donetsk regional organization of "Our Ukraine ".

According to rumours, it was he, that after the Orange victory in 2005 managed to set up his younger brother as deputy chief of the specialist state tax inspectorate appointed to concentrate on the major taxpayers of the city of Donetsk.

When the old long-time head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Volodymyr Stelmakh was replaced by Arbuzov, [who is close to the businesss of the Oleksandr Yanukovych], some observers recalled that the 34-year-old Arbuzov had had close ties to the 'Orange' team of Anton Klimenko. Arbuzov was not just an ordinary member of "Our Ukraine" through 2005 and 2006. He was No. 6 on the O.U. list of party candidates in the Donetsk regional council elections, but was not elected because the O.U. bloc failed to overcome the 3% barrier. "

The "Kommentarii" article also describes how some of the 'top bananas' at the S.T.A.U. who had "represented the interests" of PM Mykola Azarov, Rinat Akhmetov, and first VP Andriy Kluyev, including some who had overseen VAT refunds, have been replaced.

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On the first anniversary of being appointed president, Yanukovych last Friday invited the three previous presidents of the country for a cup of tea, and a cosy chat.

I wonder did Yushchenko, [and the other three] have a laugh about what mugs Ihor Lutsenko and Yulia Tymoshenko were. Without their massive support, and that of many, many more back in 2004, Yushchenko have never, ever have become president.

Now Ihor Lutsenko is 'banged up' in prison for a third month on the flimsiest of charges, even though nearly one hundred parliamentary deputies have signed a declaration, presented to the prosecutor-general, vouching for Lutsenko if he were to be released on bail before any court trial. Their appeal has been denied.

Tymoshenko is constantly required to present herself for questioning at the P-G's office several days a week since before Christmas.

Did Yushchenko laugh about the thousands and thousands of his fellow citizens who shouted themselves hoarse calling out his name while standing for hours and days in the freezing cold in 2004?

What a toe-rag..

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